1. Field
The present invention relates to apparatus and a method for the measurement of wound volume to assess progress of wound healing particularly, though not exclusively, during topical negative pressure (TNP) therapy.
2. Background
There is much prior art available relating to the provision of apparatus and methods of use thereof for the application of TNP therapy to wounds together with other therapeutic processes intended to enhance the effects of the TNP therapy. Examples of such prior art include those listed and briefly described below.
TNP therapy assists in the closure and healing of wounds by reducing tissue oedema; encouraging blood flow and granulation of tissue; removing excess exudates and may reduce bacterial load and thus, infection to the wound. Furthermore, TNP therapy permits less outside disturbance of the wound and promotes more rapid healing.
In our co-pending International patent application, WO 2004/037334, apparatus, a wound dressing and a method for aspirating, irrigating and cleansing wounds are described. In very general terms, this invention describes the treatment of a wound by the application of topical negative pressure (TNP) therapy for aspirating the wound together with the further provision of additional fluid for irrigating and/or cleansing the wound, which fluid, comprising both wound exudates and irrigation fluid, is then drawn off by the aspiration means and circulated through means for separating the beneficial materials therein from deleterious materials. The materials which are beneficial to wound healing are recirculated through the wound dressing and those materials deleterious to wound healing are discarded to a waste collection bag or vessel.
In our co-pending International patent application, WO 2005/04670, apparatus, a wound dressing and a method for cleansing a wound using aspiration, irrigation and cleansing wounds are described. Again, in very general terms, the invention described in this document utilises similar apparatus to that in WO 2004/037334 with regard to the aspiration, irrigation and cleansing of the wound, however, it further includes the important additional step of providing heating means to control the temperature of that beneficial material being returned to the wound site/dressing so that it is at an optimum temperature, for example, to have the most efficacious therapeutic effect on the wound.
In our co-pending International patent application, WO 2005/105180, apparatus and a method for the aspiration, irrigation and/or cleansing of wounds are described. Again, in very general terms, this document describes similar apparatus to the two previously mentioned documents hereinabove but with the additional step of providing means for the supply and application of physiologically active agents to the wound site/dressing to promote wound healing.
The content of the above references is included herein by reference.
However, the above apparatus and methods are generally only applicable to a patient when hospitalised as the apparatus is complex, needing people having specialist knowledge in how to operate and maintain the apparatus, and also relatively heavy and bulky, not being adapted for easy mobility outside of a hospital environment by a patient, for example.
Some patients having relatively less severe wounds which do not require continuous hospitalisation, for example, but whom nevertheless would benefit from the prolonged application of TNP therapy, could be treated at home or at work subject to the availability of an easily portable and maintainable TNP therapy apparatus.
One particular area of wound therapy which is desirable is to monitor the volume of a wound during its treatment such as, for example, at dressing change time so as to be able to quantify the healing process. However, there are presently no simple and/or accurate tools with which to make this assessment of wound volume.
Methods which have been used have include measuring the length, width and depth of a wound and making some assessment from the dimensions but this is very inaccurate; Taking a tracing around the wound, calculating the area and taking depth measurements; filling the wound with a filler and measuring the wound volume based on a known density of the filler; and photographic methods. All of these prior methods involve making calculated guesses resulting in inaccurate volume figures or are time consuming or are rather impractical.
Desirably, wound volume should be measured when a dressing is changed at, for example, every few days so as to keep a continuous record of progress.
Whatever method was used it would result in the figures having to be stored in a file, for example, and generally not with the patient being treated.